All About Perspective
by kisa sohma cookie
Summary: Due to unforseen circumstances, Kurt is forced to rely on a complete stranger to win the day. or days. Teleporting is out of the question for the moment. But what's a little road trip between not quite friends yet? Fail summery is fail, please look inside, its much better. Not a Kurt/OC fic in anyway, strictly friendship.


**To be honest, this has to be the most random piece of work I've ever had the pleasure of writing. I recently rediscovered X-men evolution, and from there, found Wolverine and the X-men. I love Kurt from X-men evolution, (sweet babu he is X3) but I also feel a strange intrigue with The Nightcrawler of the WaTX universe. While Kurt from evolution was a lot more free spirited and carefree, this Kurt was a little more somber and mature (but not without a small hint of his usual good humor). I don't know why, but I just felt like a situation, such as an impromptu road trip with a completely normal human (albeit moody) teenager struck me as hilarious for this particular Nightcrawler. Did it work? I don't know. You could always tell me for yourself. Leaving a review to a young writer sharing a snippet of a collection of oddball stories stored in her mind's eye doesn't seem like a lot, does it?**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything. Ever. **

If you had told Kurt Wagner that morning that within 24 hours, he would be clutching onto the bottom of an eighteen wheel semi, dangling above miles of harsh rough asphalt going 75 miles an hour on a freeway, being chased by yet another host of enemies the X-men had made for themselves and unable to teleport…

He probably wouldn't have been all that surprised, to be honest.

Similar situations had happened before, if not to him, then a fellow X-man. At this point, it was probably viewed as an occupational hazard.

Gritting his teeth, and extremely thankful for his natural acrobatic instinct that helped him hang on, the blue mutant soon felt the hum of the machinery give the smallest whine as it slowed down, approaching an exit or a rest area. Either way, this was his stop.

Keeping his tail wrapped around his leg and away from getting caught on anything, he managed to swing himself from under the truck to clinging to its side like a spider. He could see the yellow/off white color of fluorescent lights up ahead in the rest stop restaurant area. The truck slowed to a lazy crawl of 25 mph on the ramp specified for vehicles of its stature, circling around the parking lot for the smaller cars. On the shadowed back road, there was a trail of trees and forest left untouched by developers. Gathering his legs underneath for power, he soon launched himself into the darkened shadows by the trees about 50 yards from the rest stop.

As plush as the overgrown grass should have felt, it did not save him from having the wind knocked out of him as he landed from his jump. He tumbled and rolled until he was almost to the tree line. Finally, he came to a rest in the crevice from the manmade hill, the damp grass from the night pushing against his fur. Head spinning, he laid still for a few minutes, trying to decide if his stomach had traveled with him or if it had remained stuck to the truck.

He decided whoever tailored this garden was doing a marvelous job. In his dizzy euphoria, one of the only things he was able to focus on, besides how sore he was, was how good the fresh grass smelt.

Funny, his whole life he had wished he could be normal, and didn't have powers to hide. Now, as he glared down at the metallic bracelet wrapped around his wrist that was responsible for repelling his powers, he only wanted them back.

The bracelet was a gift, courtesy of a party of MRD's on a mutant raid in the town Kurt was stationed in. He had managed to help a majority of the mutants escape before they could be incarcerated, but not before his communicator had been confiscated and destroyed under a particularly enthusiastic officer's boot. Next thing he knew, the bracelet had been clamped and no matter how much he tried he couldn't teleport. It was a bittersweet moment when one of the other mutants that hadn't gotten away caused enough of a ruckus that most of the officers rushed to detain him. They foolishly left him with just one officer who wasn't expecting the lithe teleporter to have a kick that packed a wallop.

Unfortunately, he had to leave the remaining mutants behind, vowing to return with the X-men to set them free, preferably without the new MRD fashion statement.

Right now, however, he needed to GET to the X-men. Obviously teleporting wasn't an option. And he hadn't put as much distance between himself and the MRD's as he would have liked.

Painfully getting to his feet, the blue mutant crept further away from the rest area. He didn't have a disguise, and he felt uncomfortably exposed in the openly grassy picnic area with only a small line of trees to offer him cover. However, across the four lane highway was an area of denser wood that could help him hide from the slowly approaching MRD helicopters. He could see their searchlights miles away slowly combing over the land below for him.

He tried not to panic, but he hastened into approaching the road line, crouching by a shrub until the traffic seemingly thinned enough for him to run.

However, he wasn't used to traveling without teleportation from danger as an option. So when a speeding sedan came out of nowhere, he let out a startled gasp and moved quickly not only to avoid being hit, but being seen. The car swerved and the horn blazed, but it didn't stop. Thankfully, whoever was inside probably thought he was just an overly large deer. However, its swerving caused a chain reaction in the other cars behind and beside it, and soon Kurt found himself ducking and weaving, losing sight of his destination just so he could stay alive.

Not one of his best ideas. At least Kitty or Bobby weren't here to rub this in before he became a fuzzy blue pancake.

Finally, he could make heads or tails of where he was in the seemingly never-ending line of cars, and while it was exactly where he started, he lunged for the patch next to the shrub just one lane away.

There was another loud and abrupt 'HOOOONK' from an oncoming Sportage, and Kurt learned what it truly meant to be a 'deer in the headlight'. The bright fluorescent lights temporarily blinded him as the car came careening in his direction…

Danielle Gilroy was normally calmest when she was driving. She was a good driver, hadn't been pulled over once since getting her license over a year ago. Almost unheard of in teenagers her age. The way she saw things, if she took her license for granted then they'd find a way to take it and her car away from her. And she couldn't have that.

Driving was one of the only parts of her day that she could simply think without interruption. Whether it was her not paying attention in class (again), someone needing her to do something, or simply asking "what're you staring at" or "what's on your mind" when she had told them time and time; Nothing. She was just thinking and if she had been staring it was simply whoever was caught in her gaze's dumb luck. But no one seemed to want to accept that as an answer, and would wonder why she'd glare at them when they'd snap in front of her face, once again shattering her important train of thought.

But here, on her own in her car with nothing but her belongings and radio joining her in her solace, she was free to think as much as she wanted. So long as she didn't drive off or into anything, she'd be fine. And the continuous bland gray asphalt in front of her might as well have been a conveyer belt for how much it meant to her. The only place she wanted to get that mattered, was 'away.'

But even that thought had a brief twinge of something accompanied with it. Guilt, fear, excitement, relief? She wasn't sure.

She 'hmphed' in discomfort at this latest string of thought and turned up her radio so her Avril Lavigne CD could blast good and proper.

Danielle loved Avril, she admired her ability to speak her mind and be who she was without any fear. And unlike her, Avril was reveled for it. Not that she was a rabid fangirl or anything, but she had adopted Avril's somewhat tomboyish way of dressing and wearing thick eyeliner and mascara so her blue eyes popped out of the dark and glowed like her blonde hair. Dad said it was a phase, but she was determined to prove him wrong.

She cringed.

Dad….he'd be so worried…

A lump was starting to form in her throat, and she found it hard to swallow. It was strange…this what she wanted, but at the same time the urge to cry and turn around was just as strong. But she just couldn't…

She just couldn't. She turned the volume dial even further and sang as loud as she could along with Avril, as if she could scare these second thoughts away. It helped; it was her own secret therapy.

"_It's a damn cold night, trying to figure out this life!_"

She had always believed in what her gut was telling her, but right now there was only silence. She was lost and she didn't know how to fix it. She wished someone would come along and show her how, if only life were so simple.

"_Won't you take me by the hand, take me somewhere new…_."

"_I don't know who you are, but I…I'm with you…_"

She let her lips quirk in a tiny half smile of satisfaction. She wasn't perfect, but she was good at singing. Fortunately, she was the only one who knew it. She couldn't bear to sing in front of someone else, not even Dad. As if she needed another reason to be pointed out.

If she stuck out anymore, she might as well be a mu-

The cars in front of her flashed red as they hit the brakes suddenly and swerved to and fro. For a panicked second, she floundered on what to do. She wondered if there was an animal in the road, or if someone's tire had flown off like Dad had convinced her could happen at the drop of a hat (which is why she had to learn how to change one above all else.) She probably should have been more concerned with when it would be her turn to deal with it. Abruptly, her headlights struck the form of an upright figure, with two wide yellow eyes.

And she was heading straight for whatever it was at 60 miles per hour.

She shrieked and instinctively cut the wheel away from traffic towards the blessedly barren grass, her sturdy Kia Sportage trashing and ripping an innocent shrub from its bed and bumping clumsily over a couple of large rocks that had previously gone undisturbed. She braked and she could hear her tires squealing a little as they struggled to find a purchase on the wet grass, but they did. She finally fishtailed to a stop close to the tree line.

Knuckles white with how hard they were clutching the steering wheel, Danielle did a mental overview on herself.

Breathing, breathing was good. Both legs still attached, arms too, brain should start working normally after it has calmed down.

Once she was able to pry one of her hands off the wheel, she slowly, shakily, reached to turn off the volume on her radio.

Once the fright had subsided, she was able to notice the figure she had almost run over had also made it to the safe side of the road, and it was hurrying towards her. She wasn't sure if she was going to start laughing or shouting in anger. She opted for anger.

She kicked open her door and leaned out of it, "What the hell do you think you're doing, Crazy?!" her voice cracked out of indignation, and the figure faltered, stopping just short of the beam her headlight shot at the ground.

"Es tut mir leid, Fraulein!" The figure gasped, male and with an obvious accent rolling off his tongue with ease. "A-Are you alright?" He sounded just as winded and frightened as she had been.

Danielle took a deep breath and steadied herself. They were both alive, that's what counted.

"I'll survive….what about you?" She dropped out of her car, and she didn't fail to notice the man back up a tad to stay in the shadows.

"As you say, I vill survive."

"Not if you keep playing in traffic the way you were!" she snapped, immediately feeling bad when the guy seemed to cringe sheepishly and rub the back of his head. She sighed, about to try and console him when they both froze at the sound of a far off hum.

They both turned quickly to see a black dot of an MRD helicopter coming a little closer, the search beam sweeping with a bit more purpose.

Kurt swallowed the urge to curse; he had caused more of a commotion than he had meant with his attempt to cross the street.

Danielle stared, not sure if she was intrigued or nervous. It was too far off to tell which organization the chopper belonged to, but she was fairly sure the feds wouldn't be after her. And the only thing reasonably strange she had seen tonight was…

Finally details about the figure in front of her started to point themselves out to her, things she hadn't noticed when she had been preoccupied with affirming the fact that she was still alive (the human mind is selfish like that.) The glowing yellow eyes, the strange object moving somewhere behind him like a-

Oh. Yup. That's a tail. That's most certainly a tail.

The girl's eyes widened at the same moment his did when they both realized she made the correct assumption.

"You're a mutant…aren't you?" she asked softly.

Kurt's shoulders stiffened as if in preparation for what was surely to come. He stepped further into the light tentatively, better to get it over with quickly after all.

The girl didn't think it was possible for her eyebrows to shoot up any farther, and her mouth popped open in a silent scream. Luckily for Kurt, she was more of a 'freeze frame' sort of person when she was scared or surprised. He was blue, and from the way the light was playing off his face, she could tell he was covered in a layer of fur. He had hair like a normal human, a darker shade of blue black than the indigo covering the rest of him. The yellow eyes looked unsure and fearful as she looked him over.

It was that haunted look that stopped her from slowly backing into her car and flooring it back onto the road and away. Those eyes told a story, and not necessarily a happy one. The man was well aware that he looked like a nightmare at first, and if it weren't for the twinge of hurt each time, he would probably be bored of the same reaction of fear he got from people.

Danielle shut her eyes, taking the time to breathe in and out slowly. 'Okay brain. He's a mutant. A blue demonic fuzzy looking mutant. You know mutants are out there, of all shapes sizes and colors. This shouldn't be surprising. So deal with it."

She opened her eyes again to meet the mutant's gaze, who was cocking an eyebrow as if to say 'well, you haven't screamed yet, but you are acting kinda weird…' She wasn't sure if she should laugh or choke.

'Brain, you aren't dealing with this. Get it together.'

"…okay," she finally said slowly, "so you're a mutant. I can deal with that. All I want to know is, are you a good guy? Or a bad guy?"

Kurt gave her a baffled look and she rolled her eyes, pointing in the direction of the chopper that was hovering ever closer.

"They're looking for you for a reason right? What I want to know is if you gave them a good reason, or if this stupid witch hunt on mutants has given them a power trip or something."

'Vell, when she puts it like that…' Kurt thought to himself.

"Please, I know this must be confusing. But I need to contact the X-men, do you have a cell phone I can use? Anything?"

Danielle blinked, "You're with the X-men? They're the ones that help both parties right? Humans and mutants?"

Kurt nodded, "Yes. I was in the middle of helping a few mutants in a city there a ways," he pointed in the direction he choppers were coming from, "To escape to a ship heading to Genosha. Sometimes they need an escort so they do not get picked up by the MRD's before they can get onboard. Unfortunately, there was an ambush with too many for me to take on by myself."

He told her about what he had been through that night, up until he met her, and showed her the bracelet that was inhibiting his powers. The whole time Danielle seemed wary, but at least she was listening.

"Zat is why I need to get into contact with the X-men in whatever way I can. It's the only way we can free those that were imprisoned tonight." He finished

The girl bit her lip, "I'm sorry, I uh…don't have a phone that we can use."

Kurt deflated, and they both jumped when they heard another spotlight switch on, far too close for their liking. They both turned in the direction they heard it and saw a copter that couldn't have been a mile away.

Danielle felt that lump again, but this time it was out of anxiousness. Even if they weren't after her, she didn't want to get spotted by an official of any kind. It could cause…problems. She cast another look at the mutant, and saw he looked as apprehensive as she did.

Damn her conscience…

She sighed, "Alright alright, c'mon..."

Kurt blinked as the girl climbed back into her car, looking at him expectantly and gesturing with her head to the passenger door. She humphed impatiently.

"I don't have a cell phone, but if you're telling the truth then getting you to a phone is for a good cause. I'll give you a ride to the next rest area, I even have a coat or something you can wear to hide. But after that you're on your own."

Kurt continued to stand and stare. This was probably only the second time in his life someone reached out of their own free will to help him. Even knowing what he was. The first was-

"Do you want the ride or not! They're getting closer!" the girl snapped again, urgently looking over her shoulder with a nervous look. Finally, the blue mutant got his legs moving and moved to the passenger side.

Not mincing words, the girl swung her upper half around and rifled in a duffle bag for a second, pulling out a large baggy hoodie and thrusting it at Kurt. While he busied himself shrugging it on, her hands jerked the shift back into drive and she pulled up into traffic again, at first going as fast as she could then slowing to a normal pace as to blend in with the other cars.

The Chopper's menacing hum wasn't absent, but at least it didn't seem as much of a threat.

While Danielle continued to stare straight ahead as she drove, Kurt tugged at the sweatshirt hem. It was obviously big for someone the size of the girl, but as slim as he was, it was a bit snug on him. At least it had a hood though, that would come in handy. But his pterodactyl hands and his uniform pants were still painfully obvious. He glanced behind him to see what was left, only to be greeted by the site of not only a duffle bag, but several blankets, a pillow and a cooler with a half-eaten sandwich resting at the side of it. By all appearances, it looked like the correct assortment for camping. Yet there was no tent, and people usually didn't make those kinds of trips alone.

"Road trip?" he asked quietly, still pondering. This didn't seem…right. The girl couldn't have been older than 18.

She glanced at him and reached out to turn his head around, to which he seemed somewhat disgruntled (normally people didn't try to manhandle him unless they were being violent…or they were Logan.)

"Yeah something like that..." she answered stiffly, "Look I'll help you find the rest of your disguise once we get there, for now that'll at least keep onlookers from other cars unsuspecting."

Kurt studied her; she obviously was uncomfortable with questions. And as curious as he was, he didn't want to push his luck when he was already pilfering a ride. That and the events of tonight were catching up with him. He was sore, tired, and worried about the other mutants. He wasn't sure if the X-men had heard of the ambush on the news, or were able to locate him on Cerebro. And just because he had found a ride, a temporary one at that, it didn't mean he was safe from the MRD's yet.

"Vell…danke regardless, Miss…" He started

The girl studied him, cocking an eyebrow in slight suspicion before shaking her head.

"No 'Miss.' It's Danielle. Danielle Gilroy. Everybody just calls me 'Dani' though."

Kurt nodded, "Alright zen, Dani. I am Nightcrawler , of the X-men. But you can call me Kurt."

The girl awkwardly stuck one hand to the side for a handshake while she continued driving, peering out the windshield distractedly. It was like her brain was used to doing multiple things at once. Kurt couldn't help but let a smile quirk to his lips as he obliged. Her spunkiness and unwilling to hold back what she was thinking reminded him a little of Kitty.

They road in only somewhat uncomfortable silence, when a familiar sign of warm yellow light rose in the distance. Sure enough, advertisements were listed for restaurants that could be found at the next rest area, just 5 miles away. Dani indicated to get into the lane closest towards it in preparation and sighed in relief.

"There, now you can find a phone and you don't even have to pretend to be Frogger again,"

Kurt glanced out the window, the question 'who is Frogger' dying on his tongue. His yellow eyes widened, "I…do not think this vill be as easy as we had hoped..."

"Why?" Dani turned somewhat crossly, only to gape when she saw what Kurt was seeing.

It seemed they had underestimated the just how fast news could travel through the MRD units. The rest area was swarmed with them. People were being corralled like sheep into a general area as the men with their guns searched the perimeter.

'Three guesses for who...' Kurt thought ruefully, before his head was forced down to his knees, courtesy of Dani.

"Get down Dummy! Do you WANT to get caught?!" She hissed when he tried to sit back up. He grunted when she pressed down on his neck a little harder than necessary, probably out of nerves as she discreetly reentered traffic and away from the hive of activity. Finally, she let him go, he slowly leaned up, trying not to feel dizzy and giving her a sour look as he rubbed the back of his neck.

Dani raised an eyebrow and couldn't suppress a smug grin, "Oh, stop pouting. You're just mad because a human saved your butt twice today and not the other way around."

Kurt sighed, maybe when he was younger, that might have been true (okay maybe it was a little true even now…) but that still didn't solve their current situation.

"Bang goes zat plan..." he muttered and Dani shrugged.

"There are more rest areas out there. We'll find one eventually, they can't hold a stake out from all of them!"

/

Kurt knew right away that he wasn't home when he woke up the next morning. There was a crick in his neck from sleeping mostly upright, and he didn't feel refreshed so much as satiated for the moment. His mouth was dry and the air was somewhat stale. But at least he could feel the mid-morning sunlight warming him, wherever he was. It was certainly better than waking up in a cold metal sphere on Genosha a while back.

Blearily, he opened his eyes, slowly recalling precisely why he had slept in the front seat of a car. Last night, they had gone past at least 10 rest stops, town exits, and shopping centers (he stopped counting after five, to be honest) all of them with similar results.

They'd had been wrong. Apparently, the MRD did have the resources (and time on their hands) to stake out all of these places in the search for not only him, but other mutant escapee's. So there had been no hope for finding a phone. Eventually, a combination of the weariness he'd felt twelve hours past, and the dull hum of the car engine as it cruised down the road caused him to crumble and close his eyes. He'd planned on just dosing for a few moments. So much for that. Dani must have kept going for a while until she got too tired to keep driving herself, and found somewhere to park the car and rest. Looked like a camping site from where he sat.

He sighed, well, at least with all this commotion the X-men were bound to notice something was happening. They would investigate, and when they noticed he was missing, they would probably come looking for him after they had helped the other mutants that were detained. They knew he could look after himself, in the meantime. Otherwise they wouldn't have let him go on his post alone.

That left one other problem, he noted with some annoyance that the metal of the power inhibitor on his wrist was starting to chafe. Not only that, but not being able to teleport for this long left him somewhat uneasy. It was like being forced on a vacation he never wanted. (not like this anyway.) He had tried prying it off many times, but it either just resulted in more discomfort, rubbing the fur against the grain on his arm, or it actually zapped him when he assumed he came close. At this point, the only one who could do anything was Forge. And he was back at the mansion.

'Let's recap, shall ve?'Kurt thought sarcastically to himself, 'I am essentially stranded, vithout powers, hundreds of miles avay from the place vhere I can get them back. And I'm being chased by crazy men vith guns. Perfect.'

He reached up to rub the crusty feeling from his eyes, warily. He hoped Dani had better circumstances to wake up to than he did.

Speaking of Dani…

With the driver's seat being empty he turned towards the back, expecting to see her sprawled out on the back seat. Nothing, just the rumpled remains of her blanket and pillow. For a moment he panicked, wondering if he'd been had and she left him to make a report to the MRD's. He reached up to run a hand through his hair, a nervous habit of his, when it brushed against something that felt like paper stuck to his forehead. He pulled it off to find it was a little yellow sticky pad paper. On it was a hastily scrawled message that he had to try really hard to read.

`Don't wig out, just went to get coffee. If your still here when I get back, we'll talk. – D'

His tail swished a little in agitation with the girl for scaring him like that. Yet he had to be amused that he'd been so out of it, he hadn't even noticed her plastering the thing to his head.

He arched his back, wincing as he heard several vertebrae in his spine pop as well as the joints in his shoulders. He was just debating whether the area they were in was hidden enough for him to get out and stretch his legs, when he saw a figure walking through the trees towards the car.

He pulled the hood of his borrowed sweatshirt up to hide as much of his face as possible. The figures gait wasn't assertive enough to be an MRD, nor urgent enough. But by all appearances, despite the similar height, it didn't look like it could be Dani…

Could it?

As the figure came closer, the more boyish it became. Baggy cargo pants, along with an oversized hoodie draw up over a baseball cap jutting out, the face cast in shadow. It was carrying a paper bag and a carton tray with two drinks in it. He thought the figure would pass the car by.

He instinctively pressed against the car door when the figure didn't. It just kept coming until it was right at the driver's side window. He moved to a crouch so if they got in to the car, he at least had a better chance of getting away. The figure scoffed and jiggled the door handle, opening it and poking their head in.

"Dude, calm down, it's me." The figure had Dani's voice. And she seemed about as impressed as a cat staring down at a beetle.

Well, now he was just embarrassed.

"Dani," he breathed a sigh of relief, "Dear girl, why on earth are you dressed like that? I mistook you for a boy."

Dani shrugged, lowering the hood and switching her hat so it faced backwards on her head, letting her hair fall out from where it had been tucked under it. She leaned in to place the paper bag and the drinks on the cup holders between the front seats so she could get in too.

"Good. Then it worked. Hope you like muffins."

He spared a glance at the paper bag she was rifling through, and took the blueberry muffin she offered to him politely before he decided to try again.

"Vat vorked? Vat do you mean?"

All he got for his troubles was a wary scowl on the young girl's part.

"Look, I didn't ask questions about your getup, mister furball in spandex. I expect the same courtesy."

Kurt sighed, trying to keep the exasperation hidden, instead deciding to take it out on the muffin by giving a ruthless bite. If Dani noticed, she didn't let on. She picked up her drink from the carton at the same time Kurt did, as they opened the tabs, the strong aroma of fresh coffee filled the small space. He took a grateful sip; something told him he'd be needing it.

Come to think of it, this whole situation oozed an heir of casualness that he wasn't used to at all. Aside from her initial reaction last night, and how her face kinda blanched when he had held his coffee with his tail for a moment when wiping his hands on a napkin, Dani hadn't mentioned or brought up him being a mutant at all. If she was surprised by something, she'd shrug it off and move on.

He wasn't complaining of course, it was a nice change. What he had trouble understanding, considering how his own hometown couldn't accept his demonic appearance, was how this complete stranger could. If she was a fellow mutant, it would have made more sense. While humans accepting mutants wasn't unheard of, he certainly hadn't seen it for himself for a long time.

Finally, he couldn't keep his curiosity in check.

"So…Dani."

"So Kurt." she answered ambiguously, he repressed the urge to roll his eyes.

"Are you…vhat I mean to say is...the vay I look, it does not bother you?" he asked hesitantly. Dani raised an eyebrow.

"Not really. Should it?"

"Vell…I suppose I vouldn't blame you if it did. But no," he muttered sullenly.

Dani heaved a sigh, running a hand through her hair, "I won't lie dude, the first hour you were in the car, I'd have probably maced you if you picked something up with your tail..." She rummaged in her back pocket and fished out a small can of pepper spray, holding it up for him to see. She tossed over her shoulder towards the back of the car, "But that had more to do with the fact that you were some random guy I picked up on the side of the road than you being a mutant."

Kurt blinked, not sure if he should laugh or continue staring, "…Wunderbar."

Dani gave a half shrug, face easing into a grin, "Look, as long as you don't cut out my spleen and use it as a hat, then we won't have problems."

There was no questioning it anymore, he openly stared, unsure of how to respond. Americans were weird.

But Dani's acceptance lead to a previously unknown option in his predicament.

He allowed them ten minutes of peace, before he set about asking what he needed to. He didn't want to of course, it was risky for not only him, but Dani was virtually defenseless if they were caught (aside from her snark.) But he didn't have much choice.

Dani swallowed the rest of her muffin, wiping off her mouth with her sweatshirt sleeve, dropping her hands into her lap looking satisfied.

"So. What's your plan now? Obviously the phone idea didn't work."

Kurt sighed, preparing for the argument that was sure to come.

"No, obviously not. And vhile I do not think they will go to the extents they did last night, the MRD's vill still be looking for me."

He relayed his observations of his situation to her, and she nodded at the appropriate times, seeming sympathetic, but she wasn't exactly jumping in to volunteer her help again either.

The blue mutant ran a hand down his face, "At zis point, me contacting ze X-men is null and void as they vill already be on their way to the MRD. Not only looking for me, but to undo the damage done yesterday. The only one left at ze ins-" he stopped himself. He liked Dani but telling her about the institute itself would compromise the safety of the others, "Vhere I can find him, is Forge. He's the only one who can get zis off" he gestured to the MRD bracelet.

Dani looked contemplative, "What kind of a name is 'Forge'?"

The urge to shout 'focus' was strong.

"Either way, he's the only one who can help at this point, but as you can see, I have no way of getting to him."

He looked directly at her, and she nodded slowly, absorbing all the information just as…..then it gradually sank in what he was getting at.

"No."

"I know I am asking a lot of you, and believe me, I vould not if there was any alternative-"

Dani shook her head, "Absolutely not, look I feel for you dude, but just cuz I decided to give you a ride last night, it doesn't mean that was an extended invitation."

Kurt looked down, "I…did not realize I was interfering vith your previous plans. I apologize."

Urgh, the guy pulled off the kicked puppy look like a pro and he wasn't even trying!

Dani rubbed the back of her neck, "Well…technically speaking I didn't really HAVE previous plans. You just took me by surprise."

"Zen vhat made you help me last night, that vont today?" he countered.

That…was a very good question.

Dani wouldn't consider herself sheltered from what was going on in the mutant world, although her dad, as with any parent, tried to shield her as much as he could without making her unaware. She had nothing personal against mutants, heck she didn't have anything against mutants! Not only that, but she had a general mistrust of Senator Kelly from the get go, and was certain he was talking out of his ass about almost everything. Except his threats against mutant kind, which in her opinion, were ridiculously over the top.

At best, she considered herself a neutral party on the whole thing. She wasn't racist, but she wasn't going to be starting any pro mutant groups anytime soon.

So what had made her stop.

The MRDs had scared her, heck she cringed if she saw a state police car parked on the side of the road, the officer probably sleeping inside, not looking for specifically her. But now that she thought about it…there was no real reason why she had to help Kurt last night.

She just did.

It felt like the right thing to do, at the time.

Kurt could see the conflict playing out on her face, and felt bad, but knew she was his only chance.

"Please Dani," He pleaded quietly, "Please."

Warning bells were going off big time that something was going to happen if she gave in. Most people listened to just that, too afraid to listen to anything else.

However, Dani Gilroy wasn't most people. She had a tendency to listen to her gut's second opinion on things as well. And that was flip flopping in the way her conscience did when she played with the different scenarios in her head.

She could either abandon Kurt, get on with her life, and hope everything worked for the best for both of them. Or she could give the blue guy a ride to wherever he needed to go, then be done with it.

And…there could be some perks that came with giving him a ride, come to think of it.

She sighed, dragging a hand down her face warily, "I must be out of my mind…"

Kurt slumped in his seat, a relieved smile on his face, "Dani thank you, you have-"

"Ah-ah-ah, wait a minute!" Dani interrupted, holding up a finger to shush him, "If I'm doing this I've got two conditions."

Kurt paused, then finally nodded, "Alright, I suppose that's fair. Vhat are they?"

Dani took a large gulp of her coffee, "First of all, if I'm driving you to hell knows where, there's gonna be some rules."

"And they are?"

"Number one, don't mess with my tunes, I have complete reign over the radio. Number two, if there's only one soda left, tell me so I can buy more. And number three…"

She paused, thinking, "I got a feeling this is gonna be a long drive, so I'm not gonna say something stupid like 'no questions' because it'd get real boring real fast. But pay me the same courtesy I did you. If I don't want to explain something, don't press for answers if you can't figure it out yourself."

Kurt was suspicious before, but now he was bursting with curiosity. However, he had a feeling unless he wanted to get back to the institute via tree climbing in the dead of night, he'd better not push it further.

"Alright, I understand."

Dani nodded, looking relieved, only enticing his curious side further.

"Vhat is condition two?"

Dani sighed, looking off to the side seeming somewhat embarrassed.

"When we get to where you live…let me grab a shower."

Kurt blinked, and Dani flushed further.

"Look, I can't afford a motel room, and I can only get so far with bathroom sinks and the little soap towels they have in some of them. Just do us both a favor and say yes." Her hands were shaking, and Kurt took pity on her, chuckling.

"Alright, I vill see vhat I can do."

"Thanks."

Kurt noticed that even though she seemed reassured, as she took another sip of her coffee, her hand was shaking still.

"Dani….have you had coffee before?"

"Hmm?" Dani blinked at him, "Yeah, a few times when it was hard getting up in the morning for school. This is the first time I've had espresso though. Always wanted to try it." She took another sip and her eyes widened for just a second, a mad gleam shimmering then dying away, "Dad always said it'd be like giving a chainsaw to a monkey, a bad idea. I don't see why though, this stuff is awesome."

This was going to be an interesting few hours, "Vunderbar…."

When Dani finished her drink and started the car (Kurt made a mental note to try and keep the idea of a second espresso as far from Dani's mind as possible in the future) and drove over bumps like the tiny Kia was as agile as a motocross bike (which it wasn't) they finally made it to the main road, setting off again.

For half an hour, he left well enough alone. But finally, he couldn't hold back. Besides, as she said, questions weren't against the rules.

"So…vhat is all zis for anyway?" He gestured to the minutia cramped into the back of the car, the cooler, the blankets, and the overstuffed backpack.

Dani shifted uncomfortably, "You asked this last night."

"But you never gave me an answer," he pointed out, "If it isn't a road trip, as you don't have a destination, you said, then vhat is it, if I may ask."

"What? A girl can't take a summer to just wander and see the world around her?"

Kurt's tail swished as he wracked his brain. She wasn't explaining, so it was up to him to figure it out for himself. She probably expected him to just let it go, but he could be a determined elf when he wanted to be.

"All alone? Don't your parents vorry?" he tried to laugh it off as something any concerned adult would say, but Dani still wasn't meeting his eye.

She bit her lip, shaking her head, "Dad…doesn't know."

There was an awkward silence for a few moments following that. And Dani practically punched the radio button to dispel it. 'Least he can't call the cops on me…'

"He doesn't know…" Kurt repeated, mulling it over on his head. That couldn't be safe, letting a 16-17 year old travel the country on their own and not even double checking where they were going…wait.

Kurt leaned over and turned off the music, already breaking rule one. But Dani's shoulders were rigid for an entirely different reason now. He'd guessed her secret.

"You're a runaway."


End file.
